Improvements in manufacturing techniques and developments of material technology have allowed manufacturers of disposable diapers to reduce the quantities of materials used in manufacture and reduce the size, bulk and/or weight of various components of such products. For example, the development and improvement of superabsorbent polymers (also known as absorbent gelling materials), and improvements in absorbent core designs, have enabled manufacturers to reduce the size and bulkiness of absorbent core components. Improvements in polymer materials and processing techniques have enabled manufacturers to use lower basis-weight components including nonwoven web materials and film materials. This has enabled per-unit savings in costs of materials and shipping, without compromising the absorbency or containment functions of the products.
As a result of these improvements, current disposable diaper designs, while relatively light and non-bulky, may also have attributes consciously or unconsciously perceived negatively by some consumers. In some current designs the upper waist regions of the diapers may have relatively few or no absorbency components and may consist only of a few layers of relatively low basis weight, thin web materials. In such current designs the upper waist regions may have an insubstantial, flimsy feel to the consumer.
Caregiver habits and practices relating to applying diapers to children have been observed. It has been observed that, after fastening diapers on children, some caregivers, positioning themselves alongside the child, tend to grasp the diaper between thumb and fingers of their right and left hands, at the front and rear waist regions, in order to tug and adjust the diaper on the child for optimal fit. It has been observed that, with some current diaper designs having relatively thin structures at the upper waist regions, those caregivers may tend to reach down into the diaper with thumb and/or fingers to the absorbent core region, to grasp the diaper at front and rear locations it is believed they perceive to be more structurally robust, to make these final adjustments. It is believed that this practice or habit, subtly but undesirably, contributes to the overall mental and physical effort exerted by the caregiver for the diapering process.
Consequently, a cost-effective way of reducing or eliminating this extra effort and/or the perceived need therefor is desirable.